iwatchthecorps

I could not stop listening to this interview today. It is fascinating, containing inside info on Mr. B that I had not heard before. It is a must listen!

"John Clifford, former New York City Ballet Principal Dancer, joins us this week to talk about his career and share stories of George Balanchine.  John was a dancer with NYCB from 1966-1974 and also choreographed eight works for the company.  Mr. Clifford had a very close relationship with Balanchine, and we are thrilled to have him share him memories with us today."

John Clifford : Dancing for Balanchine

This week Michael and Rebecca speak with Justin Peck. It is a very interesting discussion particularly when Justin discusses the potential for a choreographer to "burn out". How many ballets and how often can a choreographer reasonably produce? 

Two dancers from Miami City Ballet have launched a podcast. You can listen to their very interesting discussions at http://tendusunderapalmtree.com/category/conversations-on-dance/

• Conversations on Dance: (1) Introduction
• Conversations on Dance: (2) Summer Intensives
• Conversations on Dance: (3) Life as a Professional Dancer
• Conversations on Dance: (4) Ballet Topics in the Mainstream

Podcast 3 would be great to have posted on Ballet Talk for Dancers.

Here is the video of the choreographer, Robert Dekkers (recently named a “25 to Watch” artist for 2011 by DANCE Magazine).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1sFcPzpC08

Contra Costa Ballet has recently posted video interviews with the composer and the costume designer for its new Alice in Wonderland premiering in May.

Costume designer - Marlowe Bassett

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPkpmkXCp_k

Composer - Daniel Berkman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcALtqAhQf0

ALASTAIR MACAULAY reviews program II. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/31/arts/dance/miami-city-ballet-performs-liam-scarletts-viscera.html?_r=2

Congratulations toMCB!

"After much anticipation, Liam Scarlett’s Viscera opened on January 6 to standing ovations, and received rave reviews by The Miami Herald and Dance Magazine. Before returning home to the Royal Ballet, Liam reflected on the World Premiere in this emotional video by corps dancer Rebecca King, which takes us back to the joyous night."

Watch on MCB Blog or

Rebecca King, Corps dancer with Miami City Ballet, adds the second installment to "Our Nutcracker Memories." The successes and the disappointments are poignant.

Rebecca King, corps dancer with Miami City Ballet, talked with some of her fellow dancers about their Nut memories. There are some charming and humorous moments in this short video. Revised link:

Patricia and Jennette Delgato discuss Twyla Tharp's In the Upper Room in an animated and interesting 6 minute interview, This is a must see.

Corps Dancer Rebecca King has prepared an interview with Adriana Pierce and Zoe Zien that focuses on how dancers pass on the Balanchine masterpieces. This one, the first in a series apparently, is about Square Dance. See it at her blog www.tendusunderapalmtree.com

Corps member Rebecca King has posted a video made of short interviews with dancers and staff of MCB including Edward Villella.

See her video at Tendus Under A Palm Tree

From the NY Daily News...Ballet legend Edward Villella goes from stage favorite in NY-influenced works to beloved teacher

I cannot believe that it has come time to write this post. Our Paris tour is over. These past three weeks were truly the highlight of my career and I am sure that every other company member would agree. Three spectacular weeks, 14 ballets, 17 shows, amazing audiences, and packed houses every night. There were lines out the door and around the corner for last minute tickets for our final shows. Miami City Ballet really was the talk of Paris

From the most recent Tendus Under a a Palm Tree

Paris audiences seem to be embracing ballet social media much more that we do in the US....see comments from tonight's last performance at twitter.

Last night we saw Western Symphony, In the Night, and In the Upper Room. The line for last minute tickets was out the door, down the block, and around the corner. The only seats that I saw empty were those behind the famous poles in the Chatelet. Imagine opening with Western Symphony. This really warmed up the audience. In the Night was also well received. But, Upper Room brought down the house. I lost count of the curtain calls.The entire place was on its feet for minutes and minutes.

This was the last performance that I'll see here. It was an experience that I'll never forget and I'm sure that MCB won't either.

Villella told the Herald that its invitation to participate resulted from the greater international notice the company earned during its well-received New York debut in 2009. The company has been asked to consider returning to Paris in 2014, and a similar festival is interested in luring the troupe to Spain, he said.

From the Palm Beach Daily

Here is a recent blog post leading up to week 3 in Paris.

Here is what is being danced today (the last day).

I am not sure that this was mentioned here, but there was a film festival that coincided with MCB's visit to Paris. The films included some performance with Edward dancing lead roles. See it at: http://www.lexpress.fr/culture/musique/la-cinematheque-aux-couleurs-du-ballet-americain_1011136.html

A review: Le miami city ballet à paris, ou l’immanquable spectacle de l’été.

Yesterday was Bastille Day, a day of national celebration. MCB performed La Valse, In the Night, and Symphony in 3 Movements to a nearly full house (the rest of Paris was immediately outside of the Chatelet getting ready to watch the fireworks over the Eifel Tower. The audience warmly received La Valse and their response grew for In the Night. This is the first time that I have seen In the Night. But, I was not prepared for their response to Symphony in 3 movements. The applause went on and on and on. The company received three curtain calls. I understand that this reception was even bigger than that for In the Upper Room that was performed last week.

Here are some pages from the program.

(I don't know why the images are not showing up)

After each piece, the theater was illuminated with camera flashes and this morning those pics started showing up on twitter (#MCBTakesParis)

Gary Sheldon and the l'Orchestre Promethee executed the difficult Stravinsky score wonderfully.

Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Naples...you should be very proud of your company!

My wife and I attended last night's performance of MCB at the Chatelet and will also attend tonight. Last evening we saw, 4Ts, La Valse, and Western Symphony. It was my first time to see La Valse. Since I am not a ballet expert, I will not comment on the technicality of the performance. I will however take a moment to relate my experience of sitting among what appeared to be a full house of local ballet fans. I understand that the house has been nearly full for all performances to date. There are MCB posters in the Metro, on the street, and on the busses all over the city. I felt that both 4Ts and La Valse were very warmly received. But, I felt a real energy in the audience for Western Symphony. It seemed that the audience, which was very young compared to audiences at MCBs other venues, recognized many of the tunes that wove their way through the score. Although the style may have been a little outside of the standard for French ballet, they embraced it. The applause at the end was huge and went on for many minutes. At the stage door, the orchestra (l'Orchestre Promethee) stood around whistling the tunes from Western. I think that is safe to say that Paris loves MCB and Western Symphony certainly worked well with the audience. Tonight we are going to see La Valse, In the Night, and Symphony in Three Movements. By the way, the Orchestra under the direction of Gary Sheldon was absolutely outstanding!

For those of you who tweet, you might have seen the MCB Paris hash tag "#MCBTakesParis." It is true!

They are now in Paris! Three dancers find a poster on a Paris street announcing their performances.

PBS Arts from Miami: GREAT PERFORMANCES "Miami City Ballet Dances Balanchine & Tharp"

Broadcast date: Friday, October 28, 2011, 9:00 p.m. ET

Read more

MCB Blogger tackles some questions posed by Bart: Questions with Bart III

MCB dancer, Rebecca King, has been blogging for a year. See her anniversary post here....Tendus Under A Palm Tree

Rebecca King and Bradley Dunlap are interviewed about their interests in basketball and the Miami Heat. Check it out here...